NHL officials have instructed teams to look into arena-availability dates in July and August, which suggests the league is seriously considering conducting playoff games deep into the summer, if clearance to resume the season comes from medical and political leaders.
Coincidentally or otherwise, at least three events scheduled for PPG Paints Arena during those months have been postponed.
But even if the NHL returns before the 2020-21 season -- which is far from certain at this point -- and enough arena dates can be cleared that it's possible to conduct series in venues across the continent, there is one other factor unique to hockey that conceivably could influence any decisions made by the league: Ice quality.
That is an issue in many arenas in mid-winter; what playing surfaces might be like in places where the temperature and/or humidity approach triple-digits is a legitimate cause for concern.
Jim Rutherford, though, said he does not believe that sub-par ice conditions would be a deal-breaker if the league gets permission to proceed with games before autumn.
"It could be a little bit of an issue," he said. "But it's not the biggest issue we're dealing with right now."
Rutherford noted that there are precedents for playing games in less-than-optimal conditions, specifically citing Game 3 of the 1975 Stanley Cup final at Memorial Auditorium in Buffalo, which was not air-conditioned. Play had to be stopped numerous times during regulation and overtime so that fog that formed at ice level on a hot, humid day could be dissipated. (Whether that was the most bizarre occurrence during what became a 5-4 Buffalo victory is conjecture, because that was the same game during which Sabres forward Jim Lorentz used his stick to kill a bat that swooped down toward the playing surface from the rafters of the Aud.)
Rutherford added that "the league has hired experts to help each individual team with their ice," which he feels could help to limit the numbers of problems with ice that might occur. Or, at least, to lessen their severity.
Still, Rutherford acknowledged that even the finest ice technicians can only be expected to do so much if hockey season stretches deep into the summer, especially in places where the heat can be stifling.
"The only thing I can assure," he said, chuckling, "is that the Panthers won't have an outdoor game for a playoff game."
MORE PENGUINS
• Matt Cullen's first season as a member of the Penguins' player development staff has, like everything else in the NHL, been disrupted by the coronavirus pandemic, and he said that, "truthfully, there's not a ton you can do at the moment." Cullen is with his family in Minnesota, but stays in regular contact with Mike Sullivan and other members of the coaching staff as the group tries to get ready for how things will play out if part of the 2019-20 season is salvaged. "The biggest thing we've been doing is just keeping in contact and going through some ideas, going forward," he said. "Nobody knew, originally, how long it was going to be, but now that we're in this, it's trying to prepare any way you can for the season, if it does get back. Or when it does get back, hopefully." At this point, Cullen seems confident the coaches are as ready as they can be for any resumption of play. "We're all on the same page," he said. "If and when the season does get going again, that we're all ready to go and ready to jump, as soon as they say, 'Go.' " -- Molinari
• Could the Penguins' sellout streak at PPG Paints Arena be a victim of this pandemic? The past 609 regular-season and playoff games there have attracted capacity crowds and, if there is playoff hockey in 2020, there is a pretty good chance that the streak will be extended. After that, however, it's fair to wonder whether economic stresses caused by the current societal shutdown and the aversion some people might have to gathering in large groups -- even if those concerns ease eventually -- mean the days when a ticket for every seat in the place is in circulation could be ending in the not-too-distant future. -- Molinari
STEELERS
• The Steelers began interviewing college prospects via phone Thursday, exactly three weeks out from the start of the draft. Why so late? The team always has been and continues to be very systematic in its offseason plan, handling one issue at a time. With free agency in their rearview mirror at this time, the Steelers are in the process of finalizing their draft board. The interviews that take place will only confirm some of those rankings, though a bad interview could cause the team to move a player down on its board. It's a meticulous process, but one they trust, though that process has been adjusted this year under the current rules. -- Dale Lolley on the North Shore
• As many on this site know, I am of the belief the Steelers will take a running back with one of their first two picks in this draft if the opportunity presents itself. One of the reasons for that is because I'm hearing the team has soured on Jaylen Samuels as a runner. If Samuels isn't a true running back, then his only purpose is as an H-back. But he doesn't block well enough to serve in that role. And one of the ways the team plans on using new fullback Derek Watt is also as an H-back, capable of blocking people on the move or also catching passes. Samuels, it would seem, might be on his way out. -- Lolley
• The Steelers have been busy in the past week signing former XFL players. But don't get too wrapped up in the players signed. Most are nothing but training camp fodder who would have been signed at the end of the season to futures contracts. That said, given the measure of uncertainty in this year's draft in terms of medical issues and in-person interviews, and the fact the offseason programs could be curtailed or canceled altogether, some of those experienced XFL players might stand a better chance of making a roster than they had in previous seasons. After all, most of the XFL players have already been in at least one, if not more, training camps. They have an idea of what it takes to make a team. And rookies will be playing catch up if the offseason programs aren't held. -- Lolley
• Ramon Foster's decision to retire didn't surprise many, and it shouldn't have. Nor should it surprise anyone, then, that he saw it coming, as well, and wanted no part of getting cut. Foster isn't doing interviews, choosing to allow his eloquent farewell statement speak for itself, but he and I have communicated since then, and suffice it to say, he was going to exit on his terms. And he genuinely had no interest in being associated with any other NFL team, so he'd additionally made up his mind against any free-agent pursuit. Steeler for life. Simple as that. -- Dejan Kovacevic in the Strip District
PIRATES
• As the Major League Baseball Players Association and clubs worked out their provision deal in the event the season is cancelled, the one point the union was not willing to concede involved service time. They felt losing that time would hurt players for the foreseeable future, as everyone with less than six years of service time would have to wait another year to reach free agency, greatly hurting their earning power. The players currently on 26-man rosters will be credited for the full year, regardless of if there is a season or not. If that happens, the Pirates' losses will be minimal. Keone Kela and Jarrod Dyson would go to free agency without compensation, as will their minor-league free agents, like Derek Holland. However, the Pirates would have a large group of players reach arbitration eligibility for the first time in 2021, including Kyle Crick, Richard Rodriguez, Steven Brault, Jose Osuna, Colin Moran and Jacob Stallings. It's very possible the 2021 Pirates will consist of a roster of mostly arbitration players, which could get expensive. -- Alex Stumpf
• Another part of the deal between the union and league is a temporary transaction freeze, which is partly why players like Ke'Bryan Hayes and Cole Tucker were optioned to Class AAA Indianapolis a few days before the deal was ratified. If they had not been optioned before then, the Pirates would have lost a year of team control for both players. The freeze will end when there is an opening day set. -- Stumpf
• The amateur draft will be reduced to either five or 10 rounds this year. Going by 2019's bonus slot values and Baseball America's 2020 projections, the difference between the two scenarios for the Pirates is a little more than $1 million in bonus pool money. The Pirates are projected to have a bonus pool of about $11.1 million in a five-round draft and $12.1 million in a 10-round draft, both the fifth-highest totals in the league. With far fewer draft picks than usual, it might create incentive around the league to reach and take a lesser prospect for a pick or two in order to spend money elsewhere. All potential draftees will have the option of going back to school since the NCAA extended an extra years of eligibility to spring athletes, so teams will need to provide extra incentive to picks to forgo school, especially when most of the money will be deferred. -- Stumpf
• Before the coronavirus crisis, PNC Bank had been playing hardball with the Pirates related to naming rights, from what I'd been told. And this had been going on for months. There's still a general feeling on Wood Street that an extension will get done -- the deal expires after the coming season -- but it's far from a certainty. -- DK